Chaste Alberta "Berta" Malone

  Notes and Events:

• Letter: From Mary Turner, 21 Feb 1921, Atlanta, Fulton Co., GA. Atlanta, Ga.,
February 21, 1921

Dear "Berta",

I have been trying to recall all that I have heard about the Turner family and find that it is very little - just a few things that the older members have told us. There is no written records. According to what we have heard, two brothers, Abner and Boswell Turner, came from Virginia to Georgia and settled in Hancock County and established a business there. Colonel David Love and family lived in the Neighbor and soon the Turner brothers married two of the Love sisters. Abner, your great great grandfather, married Chaste Esther Love and Boswell married Virtuous Mary Love, my grandfather and grandmother.

Abner Turner, some years after the marriages, moved to Alabama. Boswell remained in Georgia. He and his wife died early, within a few months of each other, leaving a family of young children. The Boswell Turner and Virtuous Mary Love Turner children were Nancy, who died before her parents, Abner, Thomas, James (Cousin Achsah Marsh's father), Achsah (Aunt Achsh Dougherty), David Boswell (our father). These children were raised by different guardians. I suppose that is why they knew so little of their ancestors. They knew very little of each other until they were grown.

Abner and Boswell Turner came first to Hancock County from which Greene County was later cut off. After Abner Turner went to Alabama, Boswell Turner went into Morgan County, Georgia were his son, James Madison was born and then later on located in Troupe County, Georgia.

On the way south the brothers stopped in North Carolina where Boswell purchased some Negro slaves which they brought with them to Georgia. Many years later these Negroes desired to return to North Carolina. In the hope of forcing a sale, they put poison in the water which the family drank Mrs Turner (Vertuous Mary Love Turner) died the next day. Boswell Turner, her husband, lingered for 10 months and then died.

Their daughter, Nancy, died within a few days of her mother. She was to have been married the next week to Judge Iverson of Columbus, who was at the time on his way to their marriage.

Achsah and Nancy were two beautiful women and were known as Rebecca and Rowena of Georgia - Achsah being a brunette and Nancy a blonde.

After the brothers Abner and Boswell came to Georgia, a widowed sister followed them. She was Frances Turner who married a Mr Warren. Her grandson, Cousin Jim Warren, lived here. (Atlanta, Georgia) and held a high position at the Capitol. He is dead and his children are scattered away.

Cousin Jo Webb (granddaughter of Abner Turner) on one of her visits to Atlanta, showed us several letters that were found in an old trunk that belonged to Abner Turner, your great, great grandfather. They were written to him by relatives left in Virginia. The names of the writers were Solomon, Jacob, Armstreet, and Ransom Turner. The letter were on business and nothing was said of the family. Perhaps Cousin Jo could give you some information.

Asenath Turner (daughter of Abner Turner) married Josiah Noble and was your great grandmother. Your grandmother Henson and your mother told us so.

Now about the Jesiah ancestry. A good many years ago Cousin John Hardeman of Macon, grandson of Achsah Love, came to Atlanta on business and called to see us. Said he was getting up a history of the Love family (he was not connected with the Turner) had gotten the old Bible from Texas, copied the record in that and returned the book to its owner. Said he had collected a lot of information and soon as he could get it arranged and written out, would send us a copy. Lucia asked him if there were any Jews among our forebear, as we had heard. he said yes and her name was Cohen, whether Rachel, I don't remember, and I doubt that she ever existed. Cousin John died a few months after he was here and we didn't get the copy

Our cousin, Colonel William sparks, son of Achsah Love, wrote a book called "The Memories of Fifty Years". He send Lucia a copy which we have yet. In it he speaks of his grandparents, David Love and Gene Blewett Love Says his grandfather went into the Revolution as Captain of a company, united himself with regiment of Colonel Lynch. They joined General Gates and were under this command until after the battle of Camden - *(August 16, 1780 - the battle was a defeat for the cause of Independence. General Gate was never to command another army in battle).

Our grandparents, it seems, lived in North Carolina in their youth. I am sorry that I can give you only the record of the Turners after they came to Georgia. If you can find out anything about them, please let us know. We are so anxious to know something of the family left in Virginia. The Turner brothers came to Georgia about 1800.

I think it would be just the thing for you to write a family history. If you undertake it, I believe you will accomplish it. I wish you success
Affectionately, Cousin Mollie

• Letter: Transcription of letter written to Miss Malone by R E Tarpley, 4 Sep 1934, Atlanta, Fulton Co., GA. 808 Southern Railway Building
Atlanta, Georgia
September 4th, 1934
Miss Alberta Malone
747 Juniper St NE
Atlanta, Georgia

Dear Miss Malone,

While in Halifax County recently in connection with another family line, I ran across both your Turners and mine. Your Abner and
Boswell Turner are without a doubt the sons of James Turner of Halifax County, Will of July 8, 1785, and my Fayette County Turners are equally
certain to be the descendants of William Turner of Halifax County, Will of October 5, 1795, (the brother of James) and I would say on a venture
that these brothers, James and William, are almost inevitably the son of John Turner (Nov 1, 1762) or James Turner (Jul 25, 1773) or another
John Turner (Dec 18, 1771)

I am certain that these are my Turner - by reason of the fact that my mother says that my grandfather Tarpley was always teasing my
grandmother (born Kitty Ann Turner) about her relatives in Fayette County, the Toots, the Sweats, and the Turner. In the Halifax records there are
a great number of Toots (as a matter of fact there is just outside the Town of Halifax, a steam called Toots Creek. There are a great number of
Thweatts, and it is perfectly easy to see how the Name Thweatt could degenerate into Sweat. The 1880 Census for Fayette County show
Benjamin Sweat and George Tweaty. Later in 1840 George get his name spelled correctly, George Thweat.

It looks like your Turners came to Morgan County (as stated by Mrs Faver) or to Hancock County (as stated by you) both in Georgia.
The 1820 Census, the first in Georgia, shows the following Turners in these counties:

Morgan County
Eason (probably Isham, Halifax county, Va 1786), James

Hancock County
Thomas, Henry Elenor, Philip, John, William, another John, Elisha P, George, Jonathan, Samuel Sr, Elizabeth, Levin, Samuel Jr, and Jacob P

These name being the heads of household and the only names given. Lincoln County for the same year shows Abednego, Lewis, William,
Shadrack (Sr and Jr), James B and Meshack.

I would have copied James' will for you in its entirety but for the fact that I was obliged to take it down in abbreviated form.

Very sincerely yours
R E Tarpley

• Note. "Berta" was one of the orginal members of South Atlantic Modern Language Association (SAMLA) an organization of teachers, scholars, and graduate students dedicated to the advancement of teaching and to literary and linguistic scholarship in the modern languages.